Plan change might help with Vigo flood insurance costs [The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.]

May 4—Honey Creek Vigo Conservancy District is working to revise a federal flood insurance rate map that will lower insurance rates or even a requirement for having flood insurance in southern Vigo County within the next year and a half.

The district is working on approval of a "Letter of Map Revision" with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

When formed in 1990, the Honey Creek Vigo Conservancy District had 390 residential properties, 190 commercial properties and 1,300 acres of farm land.

Today, that district, which expanded its protection area, now covers 1,709 property parcels, according to the Vigo County Auditor's office.

On Thursday, district representatives met with the Vigo County Board of Commissioners to provide an update on a map revision of the district's flood hazard zone.

The revision includes a plan at five sites that could have sandbags installed, largely across county roads, in the event of a floor categorized as a 100-year or a 500-year event.

County or city officials would have to make a decision to close any roads in the plan before sandbags would be used, said Craig McKee, attorney for the conservancy district.

The plan will require a memorandum of understanding with Vigo County, Terre Haute and Honey Creek Fire Department to commit to filling and placing 1,945 sandbags at the five sites.

The plan, if approved by FEMA, would allow property to be removed from a flood zone.

"I think most folks are going to be very happy... well over 90% of people we believe will be removed from this special flood hazard area. It could be very close to 100%," said Aaron Fricke, assistant director of engineering at Christopher B. Burke Engineering, which is working for the conservancy district Fricke said.

Fricke added that "it will free up development in the sense that the city [of Terre Haute] and the county have ordinances that they enforce as a participant in the national flood insurance program. And with the changes in the flood zone designation, there will be more ability and freedom for economic, residential and commercial development in those areas that are protected by the levees," Fricke said.

The map revision through FEMA could be completed in the next 12 to 18 months or sooner, said Parker Manning, president of the conservancy district. FEMA would also have a review period in which it will seek public comment on the insurance rate map revision, Fricke said.

McKee underlined that changes on the map do not change where flooding occurs.

"There are vast misunderstandings on flood plains and flood zones," McKee said. "This process will not alter the characterizations of the flood plain. That is a topographical reality that is unchanged by the flood works," McKee said of levees constructed by the conservancy district.

Fricke said levees can fail and because of that risk, "we would still recommend that homeowners and businesses maintain flood insurance policies in the event that something would happen. The good news is...those policies can be purchased at a greatly reduced rate."

The engineer added that the likelihood of having to place sandbags across roads would be "a rare event," especially as the sites higher than a 100-year food event.

However, Fricke said flooding can happen, referring to June 2008, when flooding hit Indiana.

Rains in early January and February of 2008 saturated the Wabash Valley, with the Wabash River cresting in Terre Haute at a near record level of 25.14 feet in February.

That rain continued into the spring. Then, from June 6 to June 7, Terre Haute got 6.83 inches of rain, pushing its monthly total to 13.32 inches, which is three times the average for the month.

The result was a flooding of Honey Creek, which flowed into homes, such as in Southwood subdivision, and businesses near South Seventh Street and East Springhill Drive and other areas.

The Honey Creek Vigo Conservancy District had started on a new flood levee system in 1990, designed to help control swelling of Honey Creek and protect homes and businesses. However, that project was not fully completed in 2008.

Officials in 2012 celebrated the completion of the 16-year long project that constructed 13.3 miles of levee along Honey Creek, Thompson Ditch and Jordan Ditch.

In addition to the sandbag plan, McKee said to gain FEMA approval, the conservancy district is "going to undertake a project to buff up the levees in a couple of places. Strip them down, add some dirt and reseed.

"Some of the [levees] are a matter of inches short, but this is a consequence of starting to build these levees in the 1990s, so the passage of time and erosion and those kind of things" have slightly lowered the levees in some areas.

That project would be bid out this summer, McKee said.

Howard Greninger can be reached at 812-231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com. Follow on Twitter @TribStarHoward.

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